Piano-bench.



A. C. ABRAMSON.

PIANO BENCH.

APPLICATION man MAR. 6. I91].

Patented Mar. 12,1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET INF/ TOR W (RM 4 TTORNEY A. C. ABRAMSON.

PIANO BENCH.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. s. 1917.

1,258,640. Patented Mar. 12, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Z "WEI/70R $7 A vfi/i ALFRED C. LBRAISON, OF ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS.

PIAN O-BEN CH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 12, 19 18.

Application filed March 6, 1917. Serial No. 152,644.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALFRED C. ABnAMsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Rockford, in the county of lVinnebago and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Piano-Benches, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates in general to benches and especially to the o-callcd convertible piano benches adapted to be converted from a flat top bench for ordinary use to one having an elevated inclined top for use with a player piano.

The main object of my invention is to provide an improved convertible pianobench embodying various novel features. These consist primarily in the provision of a seat board hingedly mounted on and covering the sheet music compartment of an ordinary open-top piano bench in a novel manner so that theseat board, in addition to serving the functions of a hinged seat and cover, may be simply and easily moved to an elevated inclined position especially adapted for use with a player piano. A further feature is the embodiment of my improvements in such simple and desirable form as to insure thorough racticability, pleasing design and to enab e production at a comparw tively low cost.

Referring to the drawings in which I have illustrated one practical embodiment of my improvements;

Figure 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view through a piano bench and cabinet embodying my improvements, showing the seat board in lowered position adapted for use with an ordinary piano.

Fig. 2 is a similar cross-sectional view, but showing the seat board elevated for use with a player piano and showing also the music roll compartment swung sidewise;

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional perspective view of one nd of the bench showing the seat board swung to an upright position;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary end view of the bench illustrating the manner in which the seat board is moved from a horizontal lowered position to an elevated inclined position; and

Fig. 5 is a lan sectional view through the bench just beneath the sheet music compartment.

The pianobeuch proper- In which my'improv'ements are embodied may be of practi- Cally standard form comprising a structure providing a leg supported open-top sheet IIllISlC compartment generally covered by a hinged scat board. \Vhile I have shown a bench of this general character embodied in a particular and simple design it should be understood that the leg structure and the general design might be considerably modified without affecting my improvements. In the present instance the bench is formed of two pairs of legs 6 joined at their lower ends by braces 7 and at their upper ends by side rails 8 and 9 and end rails 11 and 12, which define the sides of an open-top sheet music compartment having a bottom 13 suitably secured to the side and end rails. The seat board 14 covers the sheet music compartment and is hingedly secured to the bench So as to be capable. of bein swung upwardly with respect thereto to allbw access to sheet music within the top compartment.

The invention contemplates a novel form of hinge connection for the seat board whereby the latter, in addition to its usual swinging movement, may be raised bodily to an elevated inclined position above the bench. By means of suitable supports the seat board may be held in such position. Referring to Fig. 3 which illustrates most clearly the hinge construction at one end of the bench, the other end being similar, it

will be seen that the hinge is made up of I three sections, viz.: end sections 15 and 16 fixedly secured respectively to the bench and underside of the seat board and an intermediate section 17 hingedly joined at 18 and 19 to the end sections 15 and 16, respectively. By reason of this construction the seat board may be swung on the hinge 18 from its lowcred flat position shown in Fig. 1 to the upright position shown in Fig. 3, suitable means, such for instance as chains 21, being provided for limiting the extent of this movement. In the course of swinging the seat board upwardly on its hinge 18, the hinge joint 19, being located a substantial distance intermediate the front and rear edges of the board, will be carried upwardly, so that the seat board may be rocked on the pivot. 19 when the latter is in a raised position and may be thereby. fully positioned above the bench. Fig. 4 illustrates clearly shows thosat board-swung on thejointalt) to a horizontally disposed but slightly inclined position. For the purpose of maintaining the seat board in this position, the board is equipped with depending legs or supports 22 and 23 adapted to rest, respectively, on the side rails 8 and 9. The support 23 is longer than the support 22 so ranged that when the seat board is in lowered position the supports will be disposed forwardly or at one side of the side rails 8 and 9 so as not to interfere therewith.

' Suitable rubber bumpers 2% may be provided to cushion the closing contact of the seat board and also to prevent the seat board from slipping-forwardly when in elevated position. Stops 25 secured to and projecting beyond the ends of the support 23 prevent backward displacement of the seat board when in elevated position and also serve to limit the backward swinging movement of the seat board on its hinge 19. It will be evident from the foregoing that the seat board as shown in Fig; 1, serves its ordinary functions of a seat and a hinged top to the sheet music'compartment and that the front end of the seat may be swung upwardly on its hinge 18 and thence swung in a downward direction on its hinge 19 so as to elevate its rear end in the manner shown in Fig. 4, producing an elevated in- .clined seat. The construction is very simple as is obvious from a mere inspection of the drawings and the operation'to convert the bench from one to the other form is correspondingly simple and easy to effect; Furthermore, my improvements may beapplied to any standard music bench and especially to those having an open top music compartment, and when applied does not mar or detract in any way from the design of the bench. In addition it will be noted that by reason of the simple design and few parts involved, the cost ofmanufacturing a bench equipped with my improvements is comparatively small, and a bench serving two purposes may be made at slightly greater cost than an ordinary fiat top bench.

My improvements also contemplate utilizing a piano bench for another purpose connected with a player piano which consists ofproviding' a music roll cabinet below' the sheet music compartment. It is preferred that this music roll compartment shall occupy substantially the entire spacebelow the sheet music compartment and intermediate the legs of the bench so as to be capable of holding a substantial'number of rollsaand by mounting; the cabinet so that it may be moved laterally to one side of the bench the music rolls are conveniently accessible through the open top of the cabinet to one seated on the bench. The cabinet designated generally by character 26 is preferably of rectangular opentop' form occupying substantially the entire space between the legsof the bench beneath the top compartment, as is clearly illustrated in the drawings. The cabinet is so mounted that it may be swung laterally to project its open top beyond a side of the bench to enable the music rolls to be placed in and removed from the cabinet. In the present inr stance, I have pivotally mounted the cabinet by means of spring hinges 27 on a cross piece 28 interposed between and mounted on the braces 7. The springs tend to hold the music roll cabinet in an upright position and will" return the cabinet to such position after it has been swung to one side. WVhile I have shown coiled springs for this purpose, any suitable form of spring may be employed.

rolls from shiftingabout in the cabinet and consists in the present instance of suitable partitions dividing the cabinet into sections in each of which a number of rolls may be Means is provided for preventing music placed on end. Stops 31-secured to the legs;

6 limit the uprightposition of the cabinet, and movement thereof in the opposite direction to the projected 'position is limited by engagement of a projection 32 on one end of the cabinet with a spring finger 33 fixed to;

one of the legs. The cabinet may be-swung from its inner position to its projected positlon very simply by the operator, grasping the knob 34 on one end. of the cabinet and swinging the cabinet to one sideiv until the part is engaged by the spring finger or latch 33. It will be plainly evident that it is not necessary for. an operatorto leave the; piano bench to change music rolls since he may conveniently reach the cabinet,

the interior of which is entirely accessible fromone side of the bench. Thus a cabinet sufficiently large to carry a substantial number of music rolls is combined in a piano bench so as to be easily accessible therefrom and is so embodied therein as to not mar or detract from a pleasing design. 1

\Vhile I have shown and described one practical embodiment ofiny improvements,

it should be understood that various changes and modifications might be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A piano bench comprising a stand, a

.top board resting on the stand and equipped adjacent to its front and rear sides respectively, with depending supports, and means pivotallyconnecting the top board to the" I bench so that the top board may be swung upwardly to an elevated position in which said depending supports may cooperate with the bench to maintain the seat board in an elevated position thereabove.

2. In a piano bench of the character described, a stand, a seat board adapted to cover the top of the stand and equipped on its underside with depending rigid supports, and means connecting the seat board to the stand in such manner as to allow the seat board to be raised with respect to the stand and sustained in an elevated position thercabove through the agency of said depending supports which are brought into cooperative supporting relation with the top of the stand.

3. A convertible piano bench comprising an open-top stand, a seat board for the top of the stand equipped with rigid depending legs adapted to be brought into and out of cooperative relation with the stand by movement of the seat board to and from an elevated position and to support the seat board in an elevated inclined position, and a double-joint hinge for guiding the seat board in its movement to and from elevated position.

at. A convertible piano bench comprising a stand, a seat board for the top of the stand equipped at one side with a rigid depending support, a hinge pivotally connecting the seat board to the stand and constructed so that the seat board may be swung upwardly to an upright position and may also be elevated to an inclined position maintained by said support by cooperation thereof with the stand, the support being also cooper-able with the hinge when the seat board is swung to upri ht position to thereby limit movement 0' hinged side of the seat board in one direction with respect to the bin e.

ALFRED G. ABRAMS N.

copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. C." 

